Uniting The Southwestern University Community Through Student-Run Television

During the spring semester of 2000, Communications Majors Joi Lakes and Meagan Lyons learned of each other’s desire to begin a student-run television station on Southwestern’s campus. After recruiting fellow Communications major Stephanie Arsenault and English major Casey Douglas, they began an independent study with Dr. Bob Bednar to develop the station. The four soon realized the need to gain funding for the equipment they needed. While doing market research and planning the programming and structure of the station, the group also authored a King Creativity Grant proposal. Winning five thousand dollars in grant money allowed the budding station to purchase a Cannon GL-1 digital camera and an I-Mac outfitted for editing digital video. The founders of the new campus wide station realized that such an endeavor would never succeed without the backing of the campus community, so they immediately took the station to the students. Meetings were to recruit more station members. A “Name the Station” contest was held where campus members submitted possible names for the station. The station adopted the name “ARGH - Home of the Pirates” after the university-wide vote found it to be the most humorous and school spirited of the choices. Since it’s naming, ARGH has begun weekly broadcasts of “The 11 o’clock Show,” a Southwestern themed news program. More shows, including a comedy show and a music show, will be airing in the latter weeks of April, 2001. The station will be a training ground for students who are interested into entering the media after graduation as well as a source of entertainment and experience for those with other interests. ARGH truly aims to reflect the creative nature of Southwestern’s students by giving them a new arena to display their productions. ARGH is also proud to be a symbol of the recent movement towards increasing school spirit. By increasing the visibility of campus events, community concerns and student creations, ARGH aspires to become an important and influential part of the Southwestern experience.